The SFA has announced the officials that will undertake Celtic’s first attempt at defending the league cup against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Sunday afternoon.
The league will hold a special place for Brendan Rodgers as it was the first trophy he won at Celtic in his first tenure and it started the club’s incredible journey to a Quadruple Treble.
The Scottish FA have announced the officials that will take charge of the match this morning and the referee that has been placed in charge may well be a good omen for Celtic.
Alan Muir is the man in the middle. The experienced referee has officiated 39 Celtic games over his career and, incredibly, the Bhoys haven’t lost a match with the whistler in charge.
Celtic have been victorious in 35 out of those 39 fixtures with draws against St Johnstone, Dundee, Dundee United and Falkirk being the only blots in what would have been a 100% win rate under the referee in the last thirteen years.
His last match in charge of Celtic was the 5-0 rout of Aberdeen last season on Trophy Day. [Transfermarkt]
Assisting Muir on the sidelines will be Frank Connor and Colin Drummond with Euan Anderson as the fourth official.
Taking charge in the VAR room is Don Robertson and he will be assisted by Gary Hilland. [SFA]
The league cup match against Derek McInnes’ men kicks off a tough nine-game run that sees Celtic go on their travels on six of those fixtures.
Celtic have an excellent record against Killie. You have to go as far back as 2018 to see the Hoops’ last defeat to the Ayrshire club.
A 2-1 loss at Rugby Park was followed by an incredible run of 12 wins out of the last 13 games by Celtic. A 1-1 draw in September 2020 is the only match where Celtic have dropped points. Coincidentally, Alan Muir was the referee that day as well.
So all the omens for a Celtic win look good for Sunday but we cannot take anything for granted. It’s a cup tie and Kilmarnock will fancy their chances. Especially after their plucky showing in the semi-final at Hampden last season.
Brendan Rodgers will ensure his team are prepared. The Celtic boss will be keen to get his hands on the trophy once more to reassert Celtic’s domestic dominance this season.
In other news, The reason why ex-Celtic star Jota’s future at Al-Ittihad could be in the balance
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